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POERTSCHACH (Austria) - TOP seed Nikolay Davydenko beat defending champion Juan Monaco to take the Poertschach International title 6-2, 2-6, 6-2 on Saturday, storming back after an injury troubled him in the second set.
Russian world number four Davydenko, who reached the final with an easy victory over compatriot Igor Kunitsyn, took the first set in 42 minutes, immediately breaking his opponent's serve as Monaco made repeated forehand errors.
Davydenko's form deserted him, however, when a left thigh injury which required bandaging knocked him off his stride, allowing the Argentine second seed to make a series of breaks and snatch the second set convincingly.
'It was difficult to walk and I lost my concentration but I fought back from that,' the 26-year-old Russian said, adding that he did not think the injury would trouble him at the forthcoming French Open, where he reached the semi-finals last year.
'It is always good for one's self-confidence to win a tournament before Paris,' he said.
Monaco, ranked 14th in the world, appeared troubled by an injured finger and failed to convert three break points in the first game of the third set, allowing Davydenko to seize control again.
Davydenko celebrated back-to-back titles at the Austrian claycourt event in 2005 and 2006 before losing in last year's quarter-finals to Monaco.
The French Open starts on Sunday. -- REUTERS
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